


A most wonderful birthday

by madlysanecatlady



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Birthday, Fluff, Gladnis, M/M, happy birthday iggy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-08
Updated: 2018-02-08
Packaged: 2019-03-15 06:28:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13607526
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madlysanecatlady/pseuds/madlysanecatlady
Summary: Ignis generally doesn't allow for much fanfare on his birthday. Gladio has something to say about that.





	A most wonderful birthday

 Ignis struggled under the weight of the pile of files he was carrying back to his office from the all-day strategy meeting he had just left. A lot of good work had been done, but someone needed to ensure it was all properly documented and filed, and apparently that fell to Ignis. He sighed, fumbling the files so they balanced in one arm so he could open his office door and hurrying to set them down on the corner of his desk, reacting quickly to stop them falling over. He spotted something out of place on his desk and smiled. Someone had left him a coffee, and he had a feeling he knew who it was.

 _You work too hard. Especially today. Happy B-Day_ _♥ Gladio_ was scrawled on the side of the to-go cup. Ignis took a sip and sighed contentedly. Somehow Gladio had the almost prescient ability to know just what he needed before even he did. He sank into his chair gratefully, still sipping at his coffee, and pulled out his phone to thumb out a thank you text to Gladio.

He took a moment to truly savour the coffee before eyeing the daunting pile of files apprehensively. Usually he had no problem in parsing out the appropriate steps to complete a task, but the day had been so hectic he could only imagine how completely mixed up all the notes were. He was _not_ looking forward to figuring all that out. He finished the coffee and set the cup aside, intending to get to work, but was interrupted by a sharp knock on the door.

‘Come in,’ he called, assuming it was Gladio, here to talk him out of working on his birthday, but paused when he saw Sera, his assistant, coming in carrying a garment bag. She smiled.

‘Don’t you dare touch that pile of paperwork, Mr. Scientia,’ she tutted, blustering into his office, the clack of her heels almost sternly indicating that there was to be no protesting her words. ‘I am going to take care of filing all that nonsense. His highness has convinced a few of the strategists to help me make sense of all their notes, so it shouldn’t take too long.’

‘Sera, I can’t possibly ask you to do that,’ Ignis protested anyway, in spite of the stern expression on Sera’s face. He had long since learned that she had difficulty in taking ‘no’ for an answer when she really wanted something, but he couldn’t let he do all of his work simply because it was his birthday. He _knew_ that would be her next argument, and he wasn’t about to allow it.

‘I don’t care how much you argue, this is how it’s going to go,’ Sera hung the garment bag on the back of the door and turned back to face him, arms crossed. ‘And this isn’t from me, so you can’t even get mad at me.’

‘Er, who’s requesting you do this?’ Ignis frowned.

‘Let’s call it a collaboration,’ Sera smiled. ‘And they didn’t ask me to, I offered my help; consider it a birthday gift from me. You hardly need another tie,’ her eyes sparkled playfully. ‘Now, here’s your schedule for the evening: you are to leave those files with me, put on the suit in that garment bag, fix your hair up, because sweetie, it’s a mess, and you are going to meet Lord Amicitia the junior down in the carpark in twenty-five minutes. No time for arguing, get going.’ She flounced over to his desk and, in a surprising display of strength for her small youthful frame, picked up the files and swept them away, shooting a final stern glare over her shoulder.

Ignis sighed. He should have known Gladio would do _something_ along these lines to try and force him to enjoy his birthday, even as Ignis insisted it was just like any other day. He felt his phone buzz and looked at the incoming text.

_♥ I’ll see you soon. Don’t fight Sera on this. Do it for me. xx_

Ignis huffed out a sigh. Gladio was lucky he was well-loved, otherwise Ignis might get annoyed with him. The desire to never be late hard-wired into his personality, Ignis stood up and stretched, eyeing the garment bag curiously. Just what had Gladio cooked up?

He unzipped it, revealing a posh grey suit and lavender shirt. He gaped for a moment, wondering just how much this had _cost_. He noticed an envelope tucked into the jacket’s breast pocket and pulled it out. He opened it to find a cheery birthday card.

_Enjoy some time for fun, Ignis. You spend far too much time caring for everyone else to take care of yourself. Happy Birthday – Regis_

_Yeah, ditto. And let loose a little Specs. Notice? No tie. Have fun with Gladio. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, so go nuts. – Noct_

Ignis was truly touched. He could barely believe the king and prince had gone to so much trouble to treat him on his birthday. He smiled; it appeared he was officially _off-the-clock_ for an evening with Gladio. He could hardly decline such an offer, could he?

He changed quickly, hanging up his own suit and admiring the fit. Whomever had tailored this suit had done so with impeccable skill. He was impressed. He brought a hand up to his hair and sighed, feeling it going flat. He returned to his desk and pulled a small vial of hair product from the top drawer and used his phone screen as a mirror to re-style his hair.

When he deemed himself ready, he pulled open his door to find Sera standing there, waiting for him. She smiled. ‘Well, don’t you look dapper? Go. You never celebrate properly, so obviously we need to force you. Don’t make me carry you down there myself.’

Ignis nodded, knowing full well she would try to if he tested her patience. He smiled. ‘Thank you, Sera. I don’t think I tell you enough how wonderful an assistant you are.’

‘I’ll let it slide,’ she winked, waving him out of the office. For the first time, likely ever, Ignis allowed it without argument.

He made his way to the carpark to find Gladio waiting there for him. He looked down at his watch and raised an eyebrow, he was still five minutes early. Gladio must be really committed to this evening. He eyed him carefully, taking in the clean and pressed dark grey suit that fit Gladio _perfectly_ , accenting all the right places, the pastel green shirt that played nicely off his olive-tinted skin, the smoothed-down hairstyle, and the soft smile on his face. Ignis was blown away by how unbelievably handsome he looked.

‘You’re staring,’ Gladio’s smile faltered. ‘Is there something on my face?’

‘No, you look _amazing_ ,’ Ignis breathed, closing the distance between them and tugging Gladio down into a fierce kiss. He pulled away, taking in the scent of Gladio’s aftershave and smiling. ‘What is all this for?’

‘Iggy, don’t be dense,’ Gladio rolled his eyes. ‘You _know_ it’s for your birthday. Happy birthday, by the way,’ he leaned back down to kiss him again. ‘Ready to get going?’

‘And just where might we be going?’ Ignis asked apprehensively.

‘You’ll see,’ Gladio opened the passenger-side door of his car for Ignis. Ignis got in and Gladio closed the door after him, going around and settling himself in. He looked over at Ignis and smiled. ‘By the way, you look so hot in that. Sera was right; purple _is_ your colour. Noct wanted to argue for pink, but I think he just wanted to make fun of you. Not that he could; I bet you’d look hot in pink too.’

‘It does match nicely with my complexion, yes,’ Ignis chuckled as Gladio drove them out of the carpark and turned towards the more upscale market strip in the city. Ignis shot a sideways glance at him, wondering just what he had planned for them this evening.

‘Stare at me all you want, you’ll see where we’re going in a sec,’ Gladio laughed, pulling into the large carpark that served the marketplace. ‘Trust me, you’re going to _enjoy_ your birthday this year.’

Ignis got out of the car and allowed Gladio to take his hand, leading him down the street. He froze when Gladio stopped outside one of the most prestigious restaurants in the city, _Le Zu d’Or_. He stared at him. ‘Gladio, what did you do?’

‘Got us reservations for two,’ Gladio led the way up the steps and held the door open for him.

‘But how?’ Ignis asked, looking around at the expensive and timeless décor with awe. It generally took _months_ to get reservations here; had Gladio been planning this for so long?

‘Other people can plan things, you know,’ Gladio winked, handing the pretty hostess a reservation card with a smile. They followed her to a cozy table tucked away in the corner of the restaurant, a little out of the way from the rest of the restaurant.

‘Gladio, seriously, how did you arrange this?’ Ignis whispered as Gladio held out his chair for him.

Gladio smiled and sat down across from him. ‘I might’ve had some help from my surname. But even if I didn’t, the effort would be worth it to give you a good birthday. I know you don’t care about celebrating, but it’ll do you some good to take a night off and just _relax_. Have some wine, good food, and this,’ he reached into his jacket’s inside pocket and pulled out a long, thin box that was neatly tied closed with a blue ribbon. He slid it over the table towards Ignis. ‘Happy birthday, Iggy.’

‘Have you not spoiled me enough?’ Ignis looked around pointedly at their lavish surroundings.

‘I promise this is a practical gift,’ Gladio chuckled. ‘Since I figure we’ve got a lot of driving ahead of us to get Noct to Altissia next month, I thought you might appreciate having these.’

Curiosity piqued, Ignis pulled on the ribbon, untying it so he could open it, revealing a pair of silvery leather driving gloves. He pulled them out, loving the feel of the rich leather against his fingers. He looked up, emotion thick in his throat and swallowed. ‘Gladio, these are beautiful. _Thank you_.’

Gladio reached out to touch his cheek, smiling when Ignis leaned into his touch. ‘You should know by now, Iggy, I’d do anything for you. A nice dinner, some gloves, it’s the least I can do for someone as perfect as you.’

‘Takes one to know one, doesn’t it?’ Ignis turned his face to kiss Gladio’s palm. ‘I really don’t know what else to say, Gladio. It’s barely even started, and this is the most incredible birthday celebration I’ve ever had.’

Gladio smirked playfully. ‘Yeah? You think this is good? Wait till I get you home later.’

Ignis could hardly wait.


End file.
